Is there any advantage to lower efficiency speakers? 87 or below?

In general the main reason to design a less efficient speaker is to enable more extended bass out of a smaller speaker. This has been the popular trend for the most part ever since higher power SS amps started to make their mark.

Hi Puff,

It’s not really desirable, but a speaker designer may end up getting there in order to get enough bass. It’s a little complicated to explain in text, but we can often sacrifice sensitivity for the sake of bass extension. Another way to look at it is not sacrificing but balancing one vs. the other.

This is how Magico’s S1 Mk II behaves, with an 83 dB sensitivity they manage to push out around 50-60 Hz as a lower cut-off.

http://www.soundstagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1564:nrc-measu...

While I am not a particular fan of this speaker’s tonal balance, and overall cost of ownership, the overall idea is sound, meaning it’s not a cheat so much as run of the mill speaker design choice.

In my own 2-way speaker with a 6.5" driver I have to sacrifice 6 dB of sensitivity in order to get flat down to the 30-40Hz range, but I end up a little better, around 87 dB sensitivity overall. This is quite typical for speakers designed to be away from room boundaries.  I could have sacrificed even more to get more of a bass rise/bump in the lower end, but for my listening I chose not to.

Best,

E

A lot of meter readers types trying to figure it out end up chasing their tail
 If your concerned with fidelity why not ask your self
 Which speaker makes Johnny Cash sound most like
 Johnny Cash.?
 Best
 JohnnyR

@audioconnection I make loudspeakers.

I don't think it's an unfair question to ask why some speakers tend to have low efficiency, or how equipment may make some trade offs.

I also don't think efficiency is necessarily a quality standard. You should use your own tastes for that.

Best,


E

Ok extended bass.  I knew these dali ms4's were suppose to sound best away from the wall and now I know why.  My only concern would be if I wanted to pair with a lower wattage tube amp in the future. With that said, Johnny Cash sounds unbelievable on these speakers.  The extension shows up in a big natural way.